2023-11-05 21:15:56
A Sunday like any other for Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver, already assured of the world champion title for a month, scored a fifth consecutive victory by winning the Brazilian Grand Prix. Already winner yesterday of the sprint race, the Dutchman calmly converted his pole by dominating this Interlagos GP from A to Z.
The first turning point in Verstappen’s favor finally took place even before the start with Charles Leclerc going off the track during the warm-up lap. The Ferrari driver, who started just behind the three-time world champion, lost his power steering and shot straight into the wall.
” I could not do anything. It hurts. We leave, we make three turns and it stops there,” reacted Leclerc to the Canal + microphone as he returned to the pits. An abandonment which allowed Verstappen to start alone on the first row.
Alonso ahead of Perez by 5 hundredths, Gasly 7th
Enough to avoid any trouble during this chaotic departure to Interlagos. At the back of the grid, Alexander Albon (Williams) hit Nico Hülkenberg before hitting the other Haas of Kevin Magnussen, causing a red flag and a race interruption of around twenty minutes.
At the restart, Verstappen finally had to manage Norris next to him, who gained 4 places during the aborted first lap. If the McLaren driver threatened the three-time world champion during the first 4 or 5 laps, the Dutchman inevitably ended up flying away. “Both departures were very important. Afterwards, we had to manage tire wear carefully. We were very solid in this area,” said Max Verstappen.
Like every weekend, the interest was rather behind to know who was going to get on the podium. Alone in the world behind Verstappen, Norris quietly finished second, for the second time in three races after Austin two weeks ago.
Fernando Alonso, after having blown the Hamilton cap from the restart, contained Sergio Perez, author of a good comeback, behind him hard on the last lap to complete the podium. On the line, the Spaniard kept 53 thousandths ahead of Perez. “I feel like it lasted 30 laps… I thought I lost the podium. It’s a great result for the team,” enthused the Aston Martin driver.
For his part, the Mexican, not yet sure of keeping his seat for next season with disappointing results, still consolidates his second place in the drivers’ standings ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who started 3rd but ultimately finished 8th. Unable to operate his Mercedes, too slow in a straight line, a very important parameter at Interlagos, the Briton gave in in quick succession to Alonso, Perez, Sainz and even Gasly.
The Alpine driver went for a good 7th place. His teammate Esteban Ocon recovers the last point awarded, thanks in particular to the abandonment of George Russell with a mechanical problem. Two cars in the points, a good weekend for the French team.
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